"The entity 'Yvote!' (which is an abbreviation or social media handle for 'Youth Vote') was utilized to mobilize youth volunteers, some of whom were under-age, as political campaign workers in support of the political campaigns of Efren Martinez and Graciela Ortiz."
-- - Civil Filing, Case No.: 24NVVCV00084
As an LAUSD employee with access to children, Graciela Ortiz was responsible for ensuring that she protected students from harm. According to a recent filing with the California Superior Court, the LAUSD Board District 5 School Board candidate betrayed this trust with one student. The allegations within this lawsuit also raise the possibility that Ortiz improperly used her District position to benefit her political interests.
In the complaint, plaintiff "B.A." states that she met Graciela Ortiz at Linda Marquez High School during the 2018-19 school year. Ortiz served as a counselor at this LAUSD high school. She was also the faculty advisor for the Key Club.
At the time the plaintiff met Ortiz, her school counselor was running in the Special Election to replace convicted felon Ref Rodriguez on the LAUSD School Board. According to the complaint, Ortiz "recruited members of the Key Club to help campaign for her." B.A. phone banked and canvassed house-to-house for the campaign and received "a small cash payment" for her efforts.
While Ortiz lost that race to Board President Jackie Goldberg, she continued to serve as City Councilperson in Huntington Park. According to the complaint, she also "operated or utilized" Yvote!, an astroturf organization that implies that it is youth-led but is actually a vehicle to support Ortiz and her political allies.
Based on "the position of authority and trust that Ms. Ortiz had at B.A.'s public school" and the belief that Yvote! "was an organization promoting youth political power," the plaintiff began volunteering. However, instead of being youth-led, "Graciela Ortiz was the primary person in charge of the campaign." In this role, "Ortiz sent Plaintiff to be one of the subordinates of Billy Valdivia, including time outside of the office where he was unsupervised, and Valdivia was able to be alone with her." The results were disastrous.
The lawsuit states "that Billy Valdivia pleaded nolo contendere in a plea deal and was found guilty of sexually molesting B.A. along with a firearms violation. He used the firearm to intimidate and threaten the victim of sexual battery." The "especially violent" assault took place in a car Valdivia used to take B.A. "to potential voters and driving her home." Valdivia was caught in a sting operation set up by the police after the victim reported the assault to her parents.
The plaintiff alleges that the "great physical and emotional damage" she suffered from the sexual assault and sexual battery was facilitated by Graciela Ortiz's "negligent hiring, supervision, and retention" of Billy Valdivia. She states that a background check would have revealed a previous weapons charge and accusations of domestic violence. It is also questioned why Ortiz did not know that Valdivia was hanging "out with some of [the volunteers] after hours and [purchasing] alcoholic beverages for them even though almost all of them were under 21."
An email was sent to the address that the City Clerk has on file asking Ortiz if she wanted to respond to the lawsuit. As of publication, she had not replied. She has also not provided answers to any of the questions asked in the ongoing Candidate Forum series, including the December edition that centered on Student Safety.
Fidencio Joel Gallardo, Karla Griego, and Victorio R. Gutierrez are running against Ortiz to replace the retiring Jackie Goldberg in LAUSD Board District 5.
Carl Petersen is a parent advocate for public education, particularly for students with special education needs, who serves as the Education Chair for the Northridge East Neighborhood Council. As a Green Party candidate in LAUSD's District 2 School Board race, he was endorsed by Network for Public Education (NPE) Action. Dr. Diane Ravitch has called him "a valiant fighter for public schools in Los Angeles." For links to his blogs, please visit www.ChangeTheLAUSD.com. Opinions are his own.
(Article changed on Jan 16, 2024 at 1:17 PM EST)
